Source: University of Michigan
Date: May 23, 2012
Summary:
University of Michigan researchers have proven that a special surface, free of biological contaminants, allows adult-derived stem cells to thrive and transform into multiple cell types. Their success brings stem cell therapies another step closer. To prove the cells' regenerative powers, bone cells grown on this surface were then transplanted into holes in the skulls of mice, producing four times as much new bone growth as in the mice without the extra bone cells.
The researchers had shown that these surfaces could grow embryonic stem cells. Now, Lahann has teamed up with Krebsbach’s team to show that the polymer surface can also support the growth of the more medically-promising induced stem cells, keeping them in their high-potential state. To prove that the cells could transform into different types, the team turned them into fat, cartilage, and bone cells.
They then tested whether these cells could help the body to make repairs. Specifically, they attempted to repair 5-millimeter holes in the skulls of mice. The weak immune systems of the mice didn’t attack the human bone cells, allowing the cells to help fill in the hole.
After eight weeks, the mice that had received the bone cells had 4.2 times as much new bone, as well as the beginnings of marrow cavities. The team could prove that the extra bone growth came from the added cells because it was human bone.
The paper reporting this work is titled “Derivation of Mesenchymal Stem Cells from Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Cultured on Synthetic Substrates” and it appears online as an article accepted to the journal Stem Cells, to be published in a future issue.
